About this episode
What does it take to run an independent brokerage today, and what role should the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) play in it? In this episode of How It Runs, Michael Walliser, Founder and CEO of EasyDigz, sits down with Jaye Kreller of Dwell Real Estate and Jenn Cole of Be Home Realty for a wide-ranging conversation about independent brokerages and the future of the MLS. Jaye Kreller is a full-time REALTOR® with Dwell Real Estate in Chapel Hill, serving Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham and Pittsboro since 2002. A former renovation contractor and two-time Orange Chatham REALTOR® of the Year, Jaye has more than 850 closed transactions, all with independent brokerages, and more than eight years of board service through the Orange Chatham Association of REALTORS®. Jaye has also served on the Doorify Strategic Advisory Council and is a candidate for the Orange Chatham Association of REALTORS® seat on the Doorify MLS Board of Directors. Jenn Cole is Broker and Owner of Be Home Realty and has spent nearly her entire career with independent brokerages, including as one of the founders of Go Realty. In 2015, she opened Be Home Realty with her two business partners, building an independent, women-owned brokerage centered on relationships, collaboration and community. She serves on the Raleigh Regional Association of REALTORS® Board of Directors and as a North Carolina REALTORS® Director, chaired the REALTOR® Giving Network in 2024, and helped relaunch the Council for Independent Brokerages at the Raleigh Regional Association of REALTORS®.
What you’ll learn
- How both guests built their careers at independent brokerages
- Why independent brokers need a voice in how the MLS is run
- The legal challenges and leadership changes facing the MLS
- What agents need from MLS technology and search tools
- What large brokerages building their own listing networks could mean for independent brokers
- Why the American MLS system is admired around the world, and how its data supports property values
- When a private listing serves the seller
- What clients most often get wrong about buying and selling a home
Key numbers
- 850+: transactions Jaye has closed, all with independent brokerages
- About 8: times Jaye has found a private listing to be in a client's best interest
- 2015: the year Jenn opened Be Home Realty, an independent, women-owned brokerage
Common questions
What is a pocket listing?
A pocket listing, also called a private or off-market listing, is a home marketed privately instead of being shared through the Multiple Listing Service.
When does a private listing make sense?
Jenn points to sellers who need privacy, such as athletes, politicians and people in high-profile news. Out of more than 850 transactions, Jaye has found a private listing to be in a client's best interest about eight times.
Why do independent brokers depend on the MLS?
Agents once joined a firm partly for access to its listings. A shared MLS gives every agent access to the same listing data, so agents can choose the brokerage that fits them and still serve their clients fully.
What do agents need from MLS technology?
Accurate data and search tools that work. Jenn wants new tools to help agents without overwhelming them, and Jaye wants the simplest technology that gets agents where they need to go, tested before it launches.
What could large brokerages building their own listing networks mean for independent brokers?
Jaye asks where independent brokers would go if large companies launch their own listing systems, while independents are left working with tools that don't always work properly.
How does MLS data affect property values?
Comparable sales come from MLS data. Agents, appraisers and lenders use comparable sales to value homes, so gaps in MLS data can make values harder to set.
What do clients most often get wrong about buying and selling?
Both guests say clients base their expectations on their last transaction, whether it was two years ago or thirty. Every transaction is different, and the process keeps changing.
Guests' views are their own.
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